Help With Tanto Please.

[victor]

I picked this tanto up from a guy at work that his dad gave him. The scabbard is carved. The blade is 11 1\4 long. Overall the blade is 14 1/4 long. The blade is engraved on both sides. The blade is 5/16 thick.

Any help you gentlemen can provide will be appreciated. Is it a handmade blade? Its age.

[victor]

#2

[victor]

#3

[Brian]

No..not handmade. At worst...a fake. At best, a souvenir tanto with etched on hamon.
Tanto should not have a shinogi line. I think it may be a dedication souvenir/tourist item but not 100% sure. The tang is better than they usually are, but the hamon is bad and too uniform and sharp.

[Fuuten]

No..not handmade. At worst...a fake. At best, a souvenir tanto with etched on hamon.

Tanto should not have a shinogi line. I think it may be a dedication souvenir/tourist item but not 100% sure. The tang is better than they usually are, but the hamon is bad and too uniform and sharp.

When i was looking at this earlier, acid polish came to mind, but i have never seen it in hand.

 

Would this comply with a acid polish?

[Brian]

No. That hamon is artificial as heck. Not acid at all.

Also, look at the habaki, and curve of the blade.

[Greg F]

The lines are not semetrical and yeah that habaki is terrible. Isnt it strange to carve horimono on a blade not handmade? Maybe a practice horimono piece sold to tourist? All the best.

 

Greg

[Stephen]

tourist trinket 

[Jean]

It is a mechanical made machine with a plated hamon.

[victor]

Thank you for all of your input gentleman. It reminded me of a letter opener when I seen the hamon, but on a larger scale.

[Jean]

Exactly that Victor, my father-in-law had one.

[seattle1]

Hello:

 While the majority of tanto are doubtless without a shinogi-line, being as they are hira-zukuri and essentially flat on the sides, many do have shinogi lines, and some have yokote. Examples are moroha-zukuri which are sharp at the ha and what otherwise would be the mune,; kanmuriotoshi-zukuri; unokubi-zukuri; shobu-zukuri, and a couple of others less common. Most English language guides illustrate these forms.

 Arnold F.

[Brian]

Agreed, but we have discussed this before, and determined that by this, we mean regular shinogi zukuri.

Have yet to see a great tanto in that format. Just looks wrong.

[Jean]

In fact, are called Shinogi zukuri swords the ones where the shinogi runs parallel to the cutting edge on both sides and having a Yokote. Osaraku blades are excluded. All other blades pattern having a shinogi have a dedicated name